We carried out an announced inspection of the service on 9 January 2017. Crown Home Care Limited provides support and personal care for people in their own homes. At the time of the inspection the service was providing personal care to 63 people.

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People and their relatives told us they felt safe using the service. There were processes in place to keep people safe and minimise any risks that may arise in the course of delivering care to them. This included the completion of risk assessments and checks on staff. Staff demonstrated an in-depth understanding of what may constitute signs of abuse and knew how to report such concerns.

Medicines were administered by appropriately trained staff who were aware of the potential risks involved in medicine management. Staff had received training to administer medicines safely, which included checks on their competences. Staff recorded each dosage of medicines and times of their administration by signing a medicine administration record (MAR) sheet. MAR sheets were checked by care workers during their visits and by senior staff during spot checks for any gaps or errors. Completed MARs were returned to the office every month for auditing.

The number of staff met people’s assessed needs. Staff were employed following robust recruitment procedures. Pre-recruitment checks had been carried out to ensure new staff were suitable to support people in their own homes and maintain people’s safety.

Each staff member had received induction and training to enable them to meet people’s needs effectively. Staff were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities. Staff were trained and had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s varying support needs.

Staff were provided with supervision meetings regularly and they felt supported by the management to perform their roles.

The registered manager ensured the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) had been applied when decisions were made for people. Staff ensured people were given choices about their support needs and day-to-day life. The registered manager was aware of the requirements to apply for and implement Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.

Some people needed support with eating and drinking. The kind of support varied, depending on people’s health status, their needs and preferences. Appropriate professional advice was sought where necessary to ensure people's health needs were supported.

People's care plans were person-centred and focused on what was important to people. Care plans were regularly reviewed and people and their relatives were involved in the reviews. People were encouraged to take part in activities that were important to them.

The registered provider had a compliments and complaints policy and a relevant procedure following the policy. Each person was given a copy of the complaints procedure. People told us that complaints were responded to and resolved. Staff assured us they knew how to complain and that they were confident any complaints would be listened to and acted on.

People, relatives and staff spoke highly of the registered manager; they found them approachable and supportive. The registered manager understood their responsibilities and ensured staff felt able to contribute to the development of the service. People who used the service were encouraged to provide their feedback on how the service could be improved. There were a number of quality assurance processes in place that regularly assessed the quality and effectiveness of the support provided.

At the time of the inspection Crown Home Care Limited was providing personal care for 30 people. We talked with one person using the service who said the agency was “very good - the nicest I’ve had. I would recommend them to anyone.” A relative of one person using the service told us “I am very happy with the carer. They are good and responsive. That reassured me.”

We spoke with the registered manager, the care manager, the administrator and three carers. One carer told us “The support is excellent. You can ring the office at any time to speak to someone”.

We looked at care documentation and records for four people with varying support needs. We found that the planning and delivery of care promoted peoples’ choices, dignity and independence, and was flexible to meet their needs.

People were protected because staff were trained to recognise and respond to abuse and there were policies and procedures in place.

There were effective systems in place to ensure people were safe because staff were subject to rigorous recruitment procedures and a thorough induction.

People benefited from safe care and support because the provider monitored the quality of service that people received.